A Yule Tide Change
by Blood Brandy
Summary: If a butterfly flapping it's wing can cause a hurricane, then what could change when a teenager has a sudden attack of conscience? A.U. Rated T for safety, sorry if the summary sucks.


**A.N. I do not own the Harry Potter universe, nor do I make any money from it, if I did I would have pimp-slapped Rowling into writing a better ending book.**

_**Chapter 1- Butterfly Effect in Action**_

The Butterfly Effect, a simpler name for quantum chaos, is the idea that a small change, one that is seemingly unimportant, can cause much larger, usually unpredictable, changes in the long run.

A person allows an old lady in front of them in a checkout line before they buy a lottery ticket, the lady gets a ticket as well and the person wins millions.

The hero stands a few inches to one side and ends up catching in his heart a bullet that would have otherwise missed, foiling all the good he would one day do.

A teen, which skips school on the day a classmate shoots up the cafeteria, ends up with kids who cure a formally fatal disease.

But, sometimes it's not a very noticeable change, and it might just be some random act of chance or a sudden attack of conscience. It might be a sudden decision to have beef instead of chicken, a left turn instead of a right, or maybe a different outcome on a date…

)()()()()()()()(

Harry Potter, the boy-who-lived, sat at the table listening to the upbeat music playing as he saw his classmates dancing, most specifically, his closest friend, Hermione, who seemed to be having a good time as well. Then he looked to the one who was supposed to be his date for the evening, and then to her sister, both of whom seemed bored and upset. Harry felt a sudden pang of guilt, this was the Yule Ball, something that only took place during the Tri-Wizard tournament, which, if they even had it again after the fiasco they have gone through for the first time in a century, wouldn't happen again until the Patil twins were well out of school.

Now, Harry never thought he knew much about girls, at least not as much as a guy his age might be expected to know, but what he did know was once-in-lifetime dances like this were important to girls, and before he had only really planned for an obligatory starting dance with the other champions and their partners, and Ron didn't seem to even to plan to give Padma one dance. Harry felt bad, he had asked Parvati to come with him, and while she wasn't his first choice, but she had come with him. He was next to a very pretty young woman, and he was ruining the night for her. He looked past her a bit and saw a Beaux batons boy looking at Parvati in a way that was similar to how Ron tended to look at Fleur.

Harry took a deep breath and looked at the Indian girl, "Parvati?"

The Gryffindor Patil turned, arms crossed, to Harry, "Yes Harry?" There was some evident annoyance in her voice.

The young Potter swallowed the lump in his throat, he noticed Ron wasn't paying any attention, but Padma seemed to be watching out of the corner of her eye at her sister. Harry swallowed again before he spoke, "I wanted to say sorry," he didn't take notice of the bit of surprise in her eyes, or her sisters, as he continued, "This is supposed to be a good night, you went to the trouble to get all dressed up and I've just been a prat and dragging you down."

Parvati cleared her throat, "Well…that's very big of you, at least you'll admit it," her eyes flickered to her twin's date, who still wasn't paying attention.

"If you'd be willing to give me another try, I'll try to be a better date, I've just never had one before, so I might still mess up," Harry said as he smiled sheepishly.

Parvati grinned as she heard the band begin a new song, "You could start by dancing again."

Harry paled a bit, "I can't really dance that well…"

He was cut off when Parvati grabbed his arm and dragged him out on the floor, "Then the best way to learn is to do."

The song wasn't quite as fast-paced as the previous song, but it was still pretty upbeat. Harry was really out of his element, but Parvati was trying her damndest to get him dancing. At first, Harry felt foolish and worried that people were watching him, judging the-boy-who-lived, but soon, after noticing a number of people were too distracted to notice him, he was staring to have some fun, he wasn't a great dancer by any stretch of the imagination, but, as Parvati told him at one point, it was good enough to just be having fun.

As the song winded down, Harry was in a rather good mood, until he looked to see Ron was arguing with Hermione, and Padma looking to her sister beside Harry.

They approached the fight to see a hurt look on Hermione's face, "For your information, Ronald, he hasn't asked me one single thing about Harry, not once."

Ron, his ears red enough to merge with his hair, opened his big mouth again, "Then he's hoping you'll help him figure out what that egg means! I suppose you two have been putting your heads together during those cozy library sessions."

"I would never help him work out that egg!" Hermione said, getting angrier and angrier with the Weasley, "Never! How could you say something like that? I want Harry to win the tournament." She turned to her friend, "You know that, don't you Harry?" she asked, looking desperate, hoping this wouldn't cause her to lose her closest friend.

Harry was about to answer when Ron sneered, "You've got a funny way of showing it."

"This whole tournament is supposed to be about meeting foreign wizards and making friends with them!" The witch said hotly.

"No, it's about winning!" Ron shouted.

People's attention was being drawn to the fight, so Harry tried to diffuse the fight, "Ron, I don't have a problem with Hermione Coming with Krum."

But Ron ignored him, "Why don't you go and find _Vicky_, he'll be looking for you."

Hermione had tears in her eye and looked like she was about to explode.

But Harry beat her to the punch.

"RON WEASLEY!" Harry roared, although most of the hall didn't hear him over the music, many around them who weren't paying attention before were now as Ron stumbled back, not expecting Harry to do that. Harry waited a few seconds to cool off before continuing in a normal but chilly tone, "If Hermione wanted to come here with Viktor Krum, and he asked her, then she can. The entire purpose of the tournament IS to make friends! YOU are just angry that she turned you down as a date, that she didn't wait around for you to get off your lazy duff and notice she was a girl! And I know she wouldn't betray me to anyone, not that I can honestly say the same about you!"

He saw a surprised look on the redhead before continuing his rant, "I'm sorry Ron, but I trust her way more than I do you, she was the only one who would believe me that I didn't want to enter this blasted tournament, it took me near getting roasted for you to think it might be true. She helped me prepare, spent her time helping me practice. And to be perfectly honest, if things were flipped, and you were here with Fleur, I don't think I'd trust you not to betray me."

Ron looked halfway between pissed and hurt, but anger won out and he stormed out of the hall. Padma looked upset and headed towards the washroom.

Seeing her sister move off, Parvati looked to Harry, "I'm going to freshen up."

Harry smiled warmly at the concerned look in her eyes, "Take your time, I think she needs a few minutes."

Parvati returned his smile and gave him a quick peck on the cheek before hurrying after her sister, missing his blush.

Harry turned to Hermione, who still had tears in her eyes, "I'm sorry, Harry, he just makes me so mad sometimes."

"Its fine, Hermione," He assured her before attempting to change the subject, "You look amazing Hermione."

The bushy haired witch turned a bit pink, "Thank you Harry."

"Herm-own-ninny," The pair turned to see Krum approaching with four Butterbeers in his hands, on he handed to Hermione and two of the others to Harry, "I saw you vith your friend before she left and thought it vould be polite."

"Thank you," Harry said as he took the drinks, "She just went to…freshen up." He wasn't sure about telling Krum that she had to comfort her sister. "Have you liked Hogwarts?"

Krum seemed to think for a moment as he took a drink before replying, "It is varmer than home, sometimes a bit uncomfortably, but," he sighed, "I haff the same fan problems I haff at home."

Harry smiled, "I know what you mean, having a bunch of people you don't know watching you with a magnifying glass, waiting for you to slip up, but at least you chose to be famous and enter the tournament."

Viktor arced a brow, "So you vill still claim you didn't enter yourself."

Harry sighed, a little put off, "No, I didn't. I have always felt, and Hermione will back me up on this," he looked to his friend, who had a slightly sad look as she knew what he was thinking, "if it meant I could have my parents back and a normal life, I would gladly give up all my fame and every galleon I have and never have a second thought about it."

"I see," Viktor seemed to understand.

Harry decided to shift the mood a little, "I must say I was surprised to see you two are here together."

Hermione smiled, "He asked me in the library."

Krum gave a short nod, "It is…refreshing to meet someone who does not care about me as a seeker."

"I know what you mean, I can always count on Hermione to see me as Harry, and tell me when I mess up."

Hermione smirked, "Don't forget it Potter." She said with a playful jab to his arm, not seeing the strange look on Viktor's face at the exchange.

Harry returned the smile as he saw Parvati returning as a new, slow song started, "Would you like to dance?" The Patil smiled and nodded, they walked out on the floor and began a slow two step. It was pleasant, but Harry thought there was something off about his dance partner. Paying close attention, he saw a slightly nervous look in her eyes, and he looked to the side of the floor and saw the other twin smiling at them, something seemed different about her too. After a strange thought, he decided to take a wild guess, "You're a very good dancer, Padma." He saw her tense, "Don't worry, if it's alright with your sister, I don't mind the dance."

He kept the dance going, pulling her along. She looked him in the eye, "I'm sorry for the deception, Harry, I just wanted to dance with someone, and I'm not quite as outgoing as my sister."

"I said don't worry, although I'm a bit surprised you two changed dresses so fast."

"We just used a simple switching spell, but I'll admit we had to transfigure them a little," her skin got a little darker at the cheeks, "I'm not quite as… endowed as Parvati."

Harry blushed in embarrassment well, "Well, you both look great tonight."

"Thank you very much Harry." She said as the song ended and the two headed to the other Patil.

Harry smiled, "Hey Parvati," he chuckled a bit at her surprised look, "Would you two mind if I went out for a bit of fresh air?"

Padma nodded, "It might be a good idea to talk where it's quiet."

The trio made their way around the dance floor and into the great hall, leaving out the door into the gardens. They walked quietly through the paths, not paying much attention to the couples on the benches or the ones that had various appendages sticking out of the bushes. After a little bit, Harry sat down on a bench in front of a fountain.

He listened to the flow of the water for a few seconds before noticing both of the sisters were still standing, "Is something wrong," he asked, wondering if he messed something up.

"Harry," Parvati began, "I'm sorry we tricked you."

"Its fine, Parvati, as long as it is alright with you since you're my date tonight." He turned to Padma, "But I want to apologize to you Padma."

The twins shared a confused look before Padma asked, "What do you have to apologize for?"

"It was sort of my idea for Parvati to ask you to come with Ron. I asked her if she knew anyone that could come with him, and she mentioned you. He was so determined to have a date, so I didn't think he would just ignore you like that."

The Indian girl's eyes widened a bit, "its fine, Harry, like you said you didn't know. Until Parvati asked, I didn't have any real plans anyway, but now I got a dance with Harry Potter," she cocked her head to her sister, "But frankly, I was more surprised when she said she was coming with you, most would have expected you to come with Hermione, considering how close you seem to be."

Harry smiled sheepishly, "I thought of that at one point, but she's my best friend, and like I said earlier, I don't know much about dating, and I would never want to risk losing her because of some stupid mistake." He ran a finger on his forehead, "She's the only person who looks past this blasted curse scar and sees the real me, the moody, shy, quiet teen who just wants a normal school year, and I don't think I could stand to lose that."

The twins were a little caught off guard, Parvati, for being in his house, never really got to know Harry more than in passing, but she never thought she'd see him in this light. Hermione was nice enough, but Harry seemed to think of her like he would never recover from losing her. After hear the emotion in his voice, she could understand why he stood up for Hermione against his so called 'best mate', Parvati even had to admit, she, too, had thought Harry tricked himself into the tournament, but the bushy haired girl never wavered in defending his innocence.

Padma only saw Harry in a couple of classes the whole time she was at Hogwarts, and she never thought he was this vulnerable at times. She knew Hermione from Ancient Runes class, and could understand how, as a first generation witch, she would have the lore of the-boy-who-lived ingrained as much as others would. For a few seconds Padma felt a little guilty about having bought into the stories as a child, but was interrupted by something completely unexpected, Parvati had an idea, an incredibly simple, but brilliant idea.

"Have you ever tried to get the curse scar removed?"

Parvati was greeted with curious looks from her sister and more so from Harry, who just blinked for a moment before answering, "I-I just thought it was permanent."

"Well, did you ever check? I mean Gringotts has whole teams of wizards and goblins dedicated to breaking curses, maybe they could help."

Harry suddenly leapt to his feet and caught the girl in a crushing hug and put a kiss on her cheek before releasing her, "Of course, why didn't I think of that? Ron's brother is a professional curse-breaker; Gringotts might be able to get rid of the damned thing!" He scooped both twins in a hug, spinning a bit before they fell to the ground, the young man laughing the whole time.

The girls began to laugh as well just before the fall, the good mood seeming to be contagious. Neither Patil could remember Harry being this happy since the end of second year when Hermione was revived.

The trio stopped laughing long enough for Parvati to speak, "Harry, don't hold back, how do you really feel about the idea."

The young man suddenly realized what he just did and turned a bright red, "Sorry, but it's just, maybe when the curse is gone I can get rid of the scar and people won't always gawk and…"

"Its fine, Harry," Padma interrupted, "I think we sort of understand." She and her sister climbed to their feet then helped him up. After dusting off a bit, she brushed his bangs aside, "I would guess it would be somewhat similar to having a target on your head."

Harry lowered his head a bit, "You have no idea."

Parvati cleared her throat, "Well, that's something you can handle tomorrow, it's getting late, Mr. Potter," she looked to Padma and locked eyes in a way Harry had seen before with Fred and George, "and I want at least one more dance out of you before the ball ends."

Padma smirked and blushed a bit when she looked in her twin's eyes, "I would like one as well, but it is probably almost time for the last song."

Harry watched as the girls locked eyes again, like a conversation was taking place without a single word, he suspected something like this with the Weasley twins, and thought it might be a twin thing. Before he could ask, they each seemed to come to a decision and each took one of his hands, dragging him back to the castle. The ball was winding down and a few people seemed to be leaving as Harry was dragged out on the floor. A slow, soft song had just started as the Patil twins stopped him on the dance floor, they positioned themselves in front of him, Padma on the left and Parvati on the right, then each took an arm and placed it on their respective waist, then placed their own arms around his waist and began to move slowly with the music, Harry coming along for the ride. As the dance progressed, each girl placed a head on a shoulder. Harry was nervous as hell, but couldn't just separate from the twins. He could see a number of people looking at him, some wizards with jealousy, some witches seemed appalled, and a couple of his professors, namely McGonagall and Dumbledore, seemed amused at his predicament. He caught sight of Hermione, who seemed to share the amusement of the elder teachers, knowing Harry was probably uncomfortable with the whole situation.

As the song ended, the twins seemed to share another idea. Right as they stopped dancing, in near perfect synchronous, they lifted their heads and placed a quick kiss on his cheeks, turning him a red that would shame a Weasley. The band said their good bye and left the stage as the students that were left began to exit the hall. Harry asked the girls to wait a moment before working his way to the headmaster.

"Excuse me, professor Dumbledore."

The aged wizard turned, "Ah, Mr. Potter, I trust you and the young Patils enjoyed the evening," he cracked a wry grin, "I hadn't expected such a thing from you." Harry turned red enough that it was a wonder he had enough blood to stay standing before Albus spoke again, "Did you need something, Harry?"

"Yes, sir, I was wondering if I could talk with you tomorrow, Parvati had an idea that I want to speak with you about, something important."

Dumbledore could see the urgency in his students eyes, "Very well, you can come by my office after breakfast, and feel free to bring who you feel necessary," he leaned close, "the password is Baby Ruth."

Harry thanked the professor and returned to the twins, "Parvati, would it be alright to walk Padma to her dorm first, no knowing who might be wondering the halls after a party like this."

Padma bowed her head a bit, "That's very sweet of you, Harry."

"I don't mind, Harry, thanks for worrying about my sister."

Padma lead them through the crowded great hall, Harry saw Hermione saying goodnight to Viktor, the Bulgarian placing a kiss on the back of her hand, before being lead down a corridor. After a while, they came to what Harry figured was the entrance of Ravenclaw Tower, when a large eagle-shaped knocker spoke.

"Everything is for me to devour, the birds, the trees, the beasts, the flowers. I gnaw at iron and I bite at steel, I grind the hardest stones to meal. I slay all kings and ruin all towns, even the tallest mountain I bring down. What am I?"

Harry was a bit caught off guard as the metal bird spoke; he had thought it would just be a password like the Fat Lady gave.

Padma smirked at the other two, "This is one reason we don't have many break-ins in our tower, it never has the same password twice," she closed her eyes, "but this is a bit of a tough one."

"Makes sense, Hermione once said that even some of the greatest wizards don't have a lick of common sense or an ounce of logic," Harry thought a moment before turning to the eagle, "Are you time?"

The eagle bowed as the door opened, and Harry heard a voice behind him, "hey, Harry!"

Harry turned to see Cedric and Cho. Cedric said goodnight to Cho, getting a quick peck on the lips, before she headed in the open doorway.

The Hufflepuff champion turned to the group, "Harry, could I speak alone for a moment?"

Harry looked questioningly at the twins for a moment before Parvati answered, "We need to switch back dresses anyway, so I'll be back in a few minutes."

Padma gave harry a hug and a quick couple of chaste kisses, "Thank you for a nice night, Harry." She then led her sister to her room to change, leaving Harry alone with Cedric.

"So… twins?" Cedric said with a smirk.

Harry sighed, "It wasn't planned, and I'm not even entirely sure how it happened. First I'm just dancing with Parvati, and then the two of them decide to dance with me together."

Cedric waited a moment in silence before speaking again, "So, listen, I really owe you for telling me about the dragons."

"No," harry shook his head, "The rest of us already knew, I was just making it fair."

"I still think I owe you, so…you know your egg? Does it just wail when you open it?" at Harry nod he continued, "Well, just…take a bath with the egg and mull it over." Harry just stared, "Look, try at the prefect's bathroom on the fourth floor. Go to the left of the statue of Boris the Bewildered, the password is 'pine fresh'." And Cedric left as Parvati came back in her original pink dress.

"So, what did Cedric want?"

"Just… some friendly jibes between Champions."

Parvati wasn't completely convinced, but left it for now as they headed for Gryffindor tower, "So what did you see the headmaster about?"

"Oh, I was just asking if I could see him in his office tomorrow, I want to see if I can go to Diagon Alley sometime before classes start again. He said I could bring who I feel is necessary, I thought Hermione would want to come," Harry thought for a moment, "Would you and Padma want to too? It was your idea."

Parvati smiled slyly, "Why Mr. Potter, are you trying to keep all us pretty girls to yourself?" she took a minute to enjoy the young man's embarrassment, "I could ask Padma at breakfast, but I could use a refill on a couple of things from the apothecary, and there might be a few good post-holiday sales."

The pair made a bit of small talk as they headed back to their tower, once they reached the fat lady portrait; they ended up having to yell the password to wake the passed-out drunk painting, and were hit with more yelling as it swung open.

"Then you should have asked me first, I am not a last resort!" Hermione yelled.

Before Ron could retort, he felt a hand grab him by the shoulder and spin him around just before he got slapped hard across the face. Once the common room stopped spinning, he saw the perpetrator, Parvati, with an angry looking Harry behind her.

"That," Parvati growled, "Was for running out on my sister like that. And if it weren't for the fact she still had a good time with me and Harry, you'd be getting much worse than that."

Harry put a hand on her shoulder to calm the young woman, before turning to his friend, "Ron, it might be a good idea to head to bed so you can cool down."

Ron glared at Harry for a moment before turning on his heel and stomping up the stairs to his dorm.

Harry looked to his best friend, "Are you feeling alright Hermione?"

Hermione blinked away a few tears, "Yes, but I'm starting to rethink my friendship with Ronald."

"I'm sorry."

The bushy haired witch shook her head, "You didn't do anything wrong, he did. He's the one that thought of me as some sort of consolation prize, he's the one who left you high and dry because of some sort of jealousy. He thinks you would want to hog fame and glory and he thinks I would wait on the off chance he needs a last minute date, I wonder if he really even knows either of us." She sighed and headed for the girl's dorm stairs, "I'm going to bed, I need to get out of these shoes."

Parvati watched as her classmate climbed the stairs, "Harry, you didn't ask her about going to Gringotts tomorrow."

"I know," he sighed, "but she's had an eventful night and needs to rest. If I told her your idea now, she might not be able to sleep."

She smirked and wrapped her arms around his neck, "Now isn't that sweet. You know, you keep acting that sweet, I may just have to take you as a steady boyfriend, the only problem would be keeping you to myself." She placed a quick kiss on the flustered Potters lips, "Night night." She added before heading to her dorm.

Harry stood frozen for a moment as his brain processed what happened. When it failed to Harry just shook his head and sat on a couch, deciding to wait to head to sleep rather than face Ron. As he sat, he thought of what Hermione had said, _"I wonder if he really knows either of us."_

)()()()()()()(

Hermione sat on the end of her bed, rubbing her feet after having pried them out of the too small shoes she had been wearing. The rest of her dorm mates seemed to have been tired, each of them passed out on their beds and still in their dresses. After a moment, Parvati snuck in and sat on her bed, which was between Hermione's and Lavender's, before slipping off her own shoes.

"Fun night, Hermione?"

Hermione sighed, "Aside from Ron, it was nice…" Her thought seemed a bit cut off.

"But…" Parvati said, raising an eyebrow.

"But nothing," Hermione said, turning away from the Indian witch.

"Don't lie to me, Granger, what's up?"

"Well," Hermione said, a bit unsure, "If you hadn't hogged him, I was hoping me and Harry might get a dance."

"Oh, sorry," Parvati said with a sheepish grin, "You could have just asked."

"No, it's fine he was your date."

"Yeah, and I let him dance with my sister too. Besides," Parvati said with a sly grin before leaning in close to speak quietly, "don't let him know I told you, but he was only my date because he said he was afraid to ask you." The brunette girl looked at her like she was crazy, "It's true, or at least that's what he told me and Padma."

"Why would he be scared though? It's just a ball, and I've done more dangerous things with him."

"But this is Harry, from what I could tell, he thought that he might screw up bad enough you wouldn't want to be his friend anymore. From what I can see, that scares him more than You-Know-Who." Parvati stretched and yawned, "You know him better than I do, so you tell me if that sounds right. Just think about it." And she began taking off her dress and getting ready for bed.

As she lay in bed, Hermione had to admit, it was very…Harry for him to worry about losing her as a friend rather than try and ask her out. Like her, Harry was probably afraid of truly being alone, if it weren't for her, he would have been alone after his name came out of that goblet, or during second year, when even Ron seemed to think Harry could have been the heir of Slytherin. They had both spent most of their childhoods alone, but she had her parents, all Harry had was a trio of people who cursed his very existence. As she fell into a slightly fitful sleep, she wondered what sort of boyfriend Harry would be.

Parvati had some simpler thoughts, she wondered what there could be between her and Harry. Aside from the bad start, she had a nice enough night, nice enough to consider a second date. She could definitely see Harry as good boyfriend material, and could tell Padma had thought the same, but Hermione threw the equation out of whack. She slipped off to dreamland, thinking to wait and see how tomorrow went.

)()()()()()()(

When Padma woke in the morning, the rest of her dorm mates were still asleep. Her years of waking early to study wouldn't let her sleep much past seven, so by 7:30 she had crawled out of bed and dressed to head for breakfast.

As she entered the great hall, she noticed the relatively low number of students, and for the most part, those who were there seemed to either be nursing horrible headaches, or were downing coffee like they hadn't slept at all. She spotted Harry and Hermione next to each other as always, but next to them Parvati was in the spot normally reserved for Ron, who wasn't in the at the table. Her sister waved her to sit next to them.

Harry looked to see who Parvati was waving to, "Good morning Padma."

Padma nodded, "Good morning Harry, Parvati, Hermione."

Hermione smiled back, her hair now back to its normal bushy look, "I'm Glad you're here Padma. Harry has had something to tell me, but wanted to wait until you arrived." She turned to her best friend, with a slight blush at what she thought he might have to say.

"Well, Hermione, we were talking last night in the garden and we got to talking about…things." Harry was a bit wary to say anything about being afraid to ask Hermione herself to the dance, "While we were, Parvati came up with a great idea, and I might be able to get rid of the curse on my scar. The curse-breakers at Gringotts." He said with a smile.

Part of Hermione was upset at her hopes falling a bit, but mostly she ecstatic for her friend, knowing he might be able to do away with the scar. But a smaller part of her controlled her reaction, "Of course," she groaned as she smacked her forehead, "It's so simple, we should have thought of it AGES ago."

Harry smiled, "I had the same thought. I am going to talk with the headmaster soon to see if we can go to Diagon Alley today to check on it. I thought you would want to go, Parvati is as well," he turned to Padma, "Would you like to come."

Padma smirked and shrugged, "I suppose I don't have anything else to do, and I should be there to make sure my sister's idea doesn't crash and burn too badly," she added playfully.

The quartette ate somewhat quickly and soon the girls were following Harry to the headmaster's office. When they reached the gargoyle, Harry spoke the password; they climbed the stairs, knocked on the door and waited.

After a few moments, the door opened and they walked in, at his desk sat the headmaster, looking tired, but in a good mood.

"Harry, Hermione, Parvati, Padma how may I help you today?" He glanced at Harry, "With things outside of the tournament that is."

"Of course," Harry said, "You see, professor, I was wondering if we would be able to go to Diagon alley for the day."

The old wizard arced a brow above a twinkling eye, "May I ask why?"

Parvati spoke before harry could, "You see, sir, last night my sister and I were talking with Harry in the garden, and after he said something about his scar, I asked if one of the Gringotts curse breakers might be able to remove the curse on the scar."

For a moment the aged professor had a look halfway between happy amusement and surprise, before chuckling to himself, "A truly simple solution, but too simple for any of the rest of us to think of."

Hermione got a hopeful look, "So you'll let us go?"

"I'm sorry, Miss Granger, but as Harry was needed to stay for the break, he must stay the whole break. The only way off the grounds, aside from the front gate, is the floo here in my office, and I'm afraid I can't show that sort of favoritism by allowing him to use it." His eyes twinkled again as he smiled, "And I'm afraid I'm going to have to trust you will stay on the grounds, since the staff and I will be busy today with the clean-up of the ball and the planning of the tasks, otherwise I probably wouldn't notice you gone until supper time." He looked at Hermione, "Especially since human apparition doesn't work. On a separate note, Harry, how are your preparations for the next task coming."

Harry was a bit distracted, reading between the lines, when he answered, "I haven't quite solved the egg yet, but I have an idea how to."

"That's good news. I think you may want to start looking into owl order magazines if there was anything else you needed from Diagon Alley, you never know when you'll need a new book, or a robe, or a special potion ingredient." He turned to the others, "Girls, may I have a few moments to speak with Mr. Potter?" The girls nodded and left the room, when the door closed, the half-moon spectacles turned back to Harry, "Harry, I noticed last night that you had some sort of confrontation with Mr. Weasley, although I couldn't hear, both of you seemed rather angry. May I ask what happened?"

Harry sighed, "Ron was mad that Hermione went to the ball with Krum, he said she was fraternizing with the enemy or some foolishness, personally, I think he was just mad she didn't go with him. He asked her as a last resort, and in a rather rude way. Anyway, he was yelling at her, saying Krum was just trying to get me through her, that he was going to get her to betray me. I got mad, and said that Hermione would never do that and…that I didn't believe the same about him if he would have gone with Fleur."

Dumbledore had a bit of melancholy slip into his expression, "Is there a reason you would say such a thing to your friend?"

Harry nodded, "When my name came out of the goblet, Hermione was the only one who believed me, Ron didn't. He thought I was all out for glory and money. Last night, Hermione asked me if he really knows either of us, and I have to wonder the same thing," he sighed, "He broke my trust because of jealousy, he insulted Hermione because she had plans that weren't convenient for him and he ignored Padma, his date to the ball, because he was sulking. The Weasleys are the closest thing I have had to a family, and I may be friends with Ron again, but never to the same extent. He'll just be a friend, not my best mate."

The aged wizard nodded, "I suppose that's the best that can be expected after such a change, and I am proud of you for taking the higher road and still accepting he may be a friend."

"Thank you sir," Harry nodded before turning to leave.

Before he opened the door, the professor added, "Harry, it just occurred to me," Harry looked to his teacher, "When you do finally get around to this Gringotts business, you should see a senior manager about your family vault. Normally, one is not allowed access until they are of age, but given your participation in the tournament, they may judge you mature enough, and the heirlooms that could be within may be of help someday."

"Thank you for the suggestion, sir, but why didn't you tell me of any family vault before?"

Dumbledore shrugged, "It is of the Potter family, so one outside of the bloodline can open it, including myself or your aunt, and since you aren't of age, I thought it best to save as a surprise. I meant no slight against you."

"I see, thank you sir." And Harry left.

Leaning back in his chair, Albus popped a lemon drop, _Gringotts…why didn't I think of that?_

)()()()()()()(

When the girls left the office, there was a slightly uncomfortable silence. To be perfectly honest, none of them really knew each other well enough to have much to talk about.

Padma thought to break the ice, "So, Hermione, did you enjoy the ball?"

"Yes, I suppose," Hermione said with a small sigh, "Except when Ron put his foot in his mouth."

"I know," Parvati said, "He's nice enough sometimes, but others he's a real prat, personally I don't see why you spend time with him, he always seems to fight with you."

"It's because of Harry," Hermione sighed, "Ron was the first friend Harry made in the magical world, maybe ever, and I after Harry saved me, I became his friend and Ron just seemed to be part of the deal. I didn't have many friends before Hogwarts, and I wasn't willing to lose one by trying to split them up. But that might just change now."

"What do you mean?" asked Padma.

"Last night was a first, there have been times when they have had problems with their friendship, but it was usually Ron who caused them, and if the problem was with me, harry would try to take a middle ground, but last night was different, he took a side. Ron caused a rift I don't think can be repaired."

"I think I know what you mean," Parvati nodded poignantly, "I don't think Ron made a very good decision, first he all but breaks off their friendship for almost a month, apologizes then tries to get Harry to choose his side over yours. Personally, I think you two are better off without him."

"My sister makes a good point," Padma nodded in agreement, "I think Harry values his relationship with you more than his friendship with Ronald. He yelled at Ron in front of half those in attendance last night to defend you, but when the three of us spoke in private, he seemed like he might not survive without you." Padma shook her head, "I don't think he'd choose anyone's side but yours."

Before Hermione could say anything else, Harry came out of the office and motioned the girls to follow him down the stairs. After they started down the hall, Parvati spoke.

"Well, I guess that's a bust."

Harry looked back and locked eyes with Hermione, "Don't be so sure." He continued down the hall before turning into an empty classroom. After they were all in, Hermione locked the door before Parvati asked.

"What do you mean? The headmaster said we can't go anywhere."

"Not exactly," Hermione said as she looked to Harry, "He said we can't use the floo."

"But," Harry continued, "He expects us to make our way there somehow anyway, he basically said we should be back by the evening feast."

"But how do we go?" Padma asked, "Like he said, apparition won't work, and I don't think any of us can make a portkey."

"No," Harry said.

"He said _human_ apparition doesn't work on school grounds," Hermione continued as she looked into her friends eyes, "it makes sense, no one sees them."

"I know, I just thought they could become invisible, or they could just move fast…they are short enough not to be noticed."

"Harry!" Hermione admonished, "Then how would they get food supplies?"

"I suppose you're right…"

"Then would you please let us in on what she's right about!?" Parvati almost yelled, "Honestly, I know me and Padma can do that cause we're twins, and Fred and George too, but how can you two do that?"

Padma just smiled, "They're like a married couple who don't' need to talk, they know how the other thinks. I think it's cute."

The pair blushed a bit as Harry apologized, "I'm sorry. We're talking about the house elves," Harry looked to his bushy haired friend before trying himself, "Dobby!" he called to nowhere.

The twins wondered who or what was a 'Dobby' for a second before an elf appeared with a crack.

"Dobby is here, Harry Potter sir, and how can Dobby help Harry Potter sir?" the little elf asked in an excited voice while hopping from foot to foot.

"First, you can calm down," Harry said as the elf stopped hopping, but seemed to still shake with excitement, "Second, I was wondering, can you elves apparate on the school grounds?"

Dobby nodded so quickly his head seemed ready to pop off, "Oh, yes Harry Potter sir, we elves can pop to the school and away."

"And would you be able to take us somewhere like that?" Harry asked hopefully.

Dobby looked to all the humans for a moment, "Well, Dobby can manage two of you, but Dobby is not powerful enough for four." He was about ready to rush into a wall when Hermione placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Dobby, how is Winky?"

"Oh," Dobby said as his ears fell, "Winky is upset, and is almost to five bottles of butterbeer a day."

"Well," Parvati said, "It's not like that stuff is very strong."

Dobby shook his head, "No no, miss, tis strong for us House Elves. She is pining, she misses having a family to work for Harry Potter sir, she is not happy as a school elf and hates being a free elf, she likes having a family to care for and look after." He said suggestively, looking to the young wizard.

Harry sighed and looked to Hermione, again they seemed to start to work something out, the witch seeming angry for a bit before compromising, "Fine, Harry, but treat her right." She sighed.

Harry nodded before turning to Dobby, "Can I call her like I did you?"

"Oh yes, Harry potter sir, just like you called Dobby." The elf said with a smile.

"Winky!" Harry called out, and after a few seconds the disheveled elf appeared with a crack.

"What dosh yous want with Winky?" the drunken elf slurred rudely.

Harry took a moment to think of what to say before kneeling in front of Winky, "Winky, Dobby says you aren't happy as a school elf, and you want to be with a family."

Winky went from indignant to sobbing in record time latching onto the boy, "Winky misshes her family, Winky wants to be with her family," she cried into Harry's robes.

Harry patted the sobbing elf on her head, "Winky, I'm not Mr. Crouch, but if you'd like you can be my house elf."

The elf hiccupped and looked up at him, "Really? Winky could bes a elf for the old house of Potter?"

Harry nodded, "I'm not sure about that old house stuff, but you can be my elf, with a couple conditions."

"Winky ish not taking pay." The elf growled.

"I know, but I was thinking of something else. I know you won't take money, but how would you feel about a barter system?"

Winky eyed the wizard warily, "What dosh yous mean?" she slurred.

"Well, no offense to you elves, but I don't really like the way elves dress with things like pillow cases and such, can you sew?" the elf nodded, "Well, if you made your own clothes with material I give you, it wouldn't technically count as me giving you clothes, so I could just give you things like properly sized furniture and material in exchange for your service. You can work for me, you don't need to take any money, you can design your own clothes, and we're all happy, would that work for you?"

Winky looked at Harry strangely for a moment, "Ish that it?" Harry nodded and she thought for a few moments before straitening her posture and apparating away. Harry was disappointed for a moment before Winky returned, cleaned up and standing straight, "Winky elf, at your service master Harry Potter sir."

Harry smiled, "Just call me Harry, please. Now, I need your help Winky."

Winky smiled, "What can I help you with Harry sir?"

Harry turned to the girls, "Do you need anything before we go?"

Padma nodded, "I left my money in my room," she was interrupted by two quick cracks as Winky appeared in front of her holding a jingling coin bag towards her. Padma took the bag, "Thank you Winky."

Harry looked to Hermione and Parvati, who shook their heads. He faced his new house elf, "Winky, if you are able, I'd like you to apparate two of us to Diagon Alley, and Dobby will take the other two."

Winky nodded enthusiastically, "At once Harry sir." She held a hand out to Harry and Hermione took a hand. They suddenly felt a surrounding pressure, like they were being forced through a small hole, and before they knew it they were around the corner from the Leaky Cauldron on the magical side. A second later, the twins appeared with a small crack with Dobby. With a quick goodbye, the two elves disappeared and the teens were on their way. Parvati was right, a good number of stores seemed to be having after holiday sales, but despite her protests, their first destination was the bank. Once inside of the door, Harry looked around for a teller, many of whom were helping witches who were making withdrawals for their shopping.

Harry spotted a familiar face at one of the nearby teller windows, "Pardon, Griphook?"

The goblin looked up from his ledger, "Yes," he grunted, "How can I help you?"

Harry looked around a bit, "Is there somewhere we could have some privacy?"

"Can I ask what this may pertain to?"

The wizard lowered his voice, "I wish to talk with a manager about my family vault, and possibly enlist the aid of a curse breaker."

Griphook looked the young man over for a moment before writing something on a paper the promptly disappeared. The goblin then led him and the three witches away. Soon enough they came to an office door, where the goblin just stood, waiting for them to enter. Inside, behind a good sized redwood desk was an older looking goblin in simple robes, but with shiny rings and an ordinate decorated sword at his side. He motioned to the chairs in front of him and the teenagers sat.

The goblin cleared his throat, "Mr. Potter, I am Sharg, a senior account manager here at Gringotts. Now, I am told that you wish to have access to you family vault," Harry nodded, "You do realize that one needs to be of age before we allow that, right?"

Harry nodded again, "Yes, Mr. Sharg, I don't know if you are aware, but I have been, against my will and without my knowledge, been entered in the Triwizard Tournament, a contest were the participants must be of age. I had hoped that might be reason enough to count me as being of age."

Sharg nodded and wrote something on his own notepad, "and you requested a curse breaker as well?"

"Yes, sir, I would like to see if they can do anything about this curse scar, maybe get it off."

"I see... you would wish to be rid of the symbol of your first triumph?"

"With all due respect sir, I don't like being famous, and even if I did, I wouldn't want it at the cost of my family, and would like it to be for something I can remember doing on purpose."

The goblin nodded and cracked a grin as he wrote a few notes, "Mr. Potter, I will pay a visit to our legal department, would you be able to return here in a few hours?"

"Yes, my friends wanted to do a bit of shopping as well."

"Very good, I will try to at least have a curse breaker ready," the goblin paused for a moment, "You realize this could be expensive."

"Yes, sir, but I really would consider it worth it."

"Understood, I will set an appointment at two."

"Thank you sir," Harry was about to turn when he had a flash of one of the few useful things he could remember from Professor Binns class, he bowed his head, "May gold flow to your coffers, and may your enemies find theirs empty." He hoped he hadn't made a fool of himself by using a phrase that was too old.

The elder goblin looked a bit surprised for a second before standing on his chair and bowing as well and replying, "And may your blade stay sharp and your shield strong, Mr. Potter."

Harry bowed again, the girls following his example this time, before they filed out of the room.

Sharg waited a few moments before leaving his own office and heading to the legal department, feeling somewhat pleased that there are humans willing to observe traditions that even some young goblins would ignore.

)()()()()()()(

After a quick withdrawal from his vault, Harry let the girls drag him out to shop. Parvati had wanted to see what Madam Malkin had on sale, but was overruled by Hermione and Padma, who wanted to get to Flourish and Blotts. They arrived at the bookseller when Padma suggested they first check the back where the second hand books were.

"You'd be surprised what you can sometimes find," she explained, "Sometimes there are old books that aren't printed anymore."

They spent about an hour going through the second hand books, each finding a couple books that seemed interesting, Harry picking up _Hexes, Spells and How to Block Them_, a special extended addition of _Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them,_ a good condition copy of _Powerful Potions and Deadly Draughts, _a book on non-human customs, and lastly a copy of an old book called _Finding Fellowship With Your Familiar _which he thought might help him with Hedwig as well as Hermione and Crookshanks_._ Hermione and Padma both got a good number of books, especially after Harry offered to pay for some of them, and Parvati picked up a couple as well. After they finished, they went to Madam Malkin's. Parvati was more in her element, finding some shoes she liked as Hermione helped Harry pick out some materials for Winky.

After visiting a few more stores and a good lunch at the Leaky Cauldron, the group was sitting quietly in a Gringotts waiting room, each of them looking over their purchases, Hermione already a few chapters into one of her books. Finally a goblin came to collect them, taking them back to Sharg's office, where the manager was waiting with a second bespectacled goblin.

"Mr. Potter," He greeted with a bow, which Harry returned before sitting, "I would like to begin by saying that I have some news from legal. You see, Mr. Potter, the contract itself is iron clad. Normally a contract is only binding when entered into willingly and without coercion."

"Then how is it binding?" Hermione interrupted, "Harry didn't enter himself."

"I was getting to that miss." Sharg said in a slightly annoyed tone, "As I said, the contracts are only binding when signed willingly, but the basis for the goblet's choice is simply your name on a paper, so it could just be your name signed on anything inconsequential, like an assignment or autograph. Normally, an imposed or copied signature would not work for a magical contract, but since the signed name is the entire contract, you fell through a loophole, and had it required something like signing 'I wish to enter the Tri-Wizard tournament' then this wouldn't have worked, and piecing together random words you've written before wouldn't have worked and you'd be in the clear. But I digress; we lost any chance to weasel you out of it legally when you willingly completed the first task." Harry's shoulders sagged, "But there is a bit of good news Mr. Potter."

Harry sighed, if he had managed to get here sooner, he might not have had to compete, "Yes, Mr. Sharg?"

"Since the tournament is a ministry sponsored event that one must be of age to compete, and the ministry allowed you to do so, then they have no choice but to count you as an adult, allowing you freedom from any underage restrictions such as the restriction on magic outside of specified areas."

Harry perked up a bit at this, "Pardon, Mr. Sharg, does that mean I don't need to return to my legal guardians during the summer?"

Sharg nodded, "If you desired, you would need to return to Hogwarts after the tournament. It also means that you are allowed to access your Family vault and properties. I have also called Blackfang here," he said motioning towards the second goblin, "one of our foremost curse breakers."

Harry bowed to the second goblin, "I'm pleased to make your acquaintance Mr. Blackfang." He said as the girls did the same.

"Charmed," the goblin half grunted half growled, "Mr. Potter, I will perform a quick diagnostic spell to identify what sort of curse you have, if it is something we can deal with, the charge will depend on the severity of the curse. If it is an unknown curse, we will just charge you a small fee and foreword the results to other curse breakers to see if any others can break it, but your personal information and name will be kept purely confidential. Do you consent to this?" he explained, getting straight to business.

"Yes, I consent to the diagnostic." Harry agreed.

Blackfang moved in front of Harry and asked him to sit on the ground, to bring them eye to eye, and held a gnarled hand in front of the scar, muttering something Harry couldn't understand. After a few seconds, the scar began to burn a bit, not severely, just uncomfortably. The old goblins eyes widened, and he redid the test. When he got the same results, he started swearing in Gobbledegook.

Upon here his fellow's words, Sharg seemed upset as well and took a few breaths to calm himself before speaking, "Well, Mr. Potter, we have identified the curse. This darkest of true dark magic placed upon you, has made you," he struggled with the word like he was swallowing venom, "a horcrux."

***********************************************

**A.N. There we go, my first Harry Potter fanfic Chapter. I plan for this to be a Harry/Hermione fic with a very good possibility of one or both of the Patils. At the very least, the twins will be very close to the couple, and Ron will be no longer. I don't much care for Ron, and considered it a big mistake for Rowling to put him with Hermione. I'm on okay grounds with Ginny, although I did believe there are better pairings for Harry. That being said, I hope to do well with this, I just have so many ideas bouncing around in my head it sometimes gets hard to keep them straight.**

**Please review.  
**

**Laters.**


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